By Sara Foss
The Daily Gazette
August 26, 2007

Rich in stem cells, umbilical cord blood has been used to treat illnesses such as leukemia, lymphoma and Crohn's disease. But not everyone is aware of the cord blood's therapeutic abilities or how to store it for future use.

A new state law, however, could change that.

Under the law, the New York state Department of Health will develop a program to educate both the public and health care professionals about the benefits of umbilical cord blood banking -- storing the blood so that it can be transplanted into sick people. The agency will develop an educational campaign that uses brochures, the Internet and public service announcements to promote umbilical cord banking; these materials will be made available to local departments of health, obstetricians/gynecologists, pediatricians, hospitals, clinics, midwives and others.

"A lot of people are just learning about the advantages of banking cord blood," said Assemblyman Joseph R. Lentol, D-Brooklyn, who sponsored the legislation. Whether to bank umbilical cord blood is a decision parents must make before their baby is born, which is why the educational push is so important, he said. "We know stem cells in cord blood are invaluable for treatment in a variety of diseases," he said.

Another goal is expanding the umbilical cord blood banking options in New York, particularly upstate. Last year, the state announced plans to build a $10 million umbilical cord bank in Syracuse. The facility will also serve as a research center.

The umbilical cord blood banking legislation had strong support from the New York State Catholic Conference.

"This is a great use of stem cells," said Kathleen Gallagher, director of pro-life activities and the Catholic Advocacy Network for the New York State Catholic Conference. "In general, the Catholic church has a reputation of being totally against stem cells." Meeting one of the first adults -- a man who recovered from a rare form of cancer -- to be successfully treated using umbilical cord blood stem cells helped convince her of their curative power, she said. "Cord blood is a miracle," Gallagher said.

The New York State Catholic Conference opposes the more controversial embryonic stem cell research because it involves harvesting human embryos, something the group believes is equivalent to the destruction of human life.

The new law requires the Department of Health to develop criteria regarding the appropriate collection and storage of cord blood for public and private banking and identify blood banks serving different parts of the state.

"The department is developing and will implement a public awareness campaign on the benefits of both public and private cord blood banks," said Jeffrey Hammond, a spokesman with the Department of Health. The new law requires the campaign to be started by the end of January 2008.

The state will create a toll-free number that will provide information on umbilical cord blood banking and also direct donors to public or private banks.

After a baby is born, a small amount of blood, between three to five ounces, from the placenta and umbilical cord can be collected and donated to a blood bank for processing. Collection takes place after the umbilical cord has been cut. The procedure is noninvasive.

"Umbilical cords are considered medical waste and routinely thrown in the garbage," Gallagher said. Right now, few people know where or how to donate umbilical cord blood, she said. "This bill will let women know that this is an option."

At private banks, parents can store blood in case their child ever needs it, while public banks collect blood that can be donated to anyone who needs it. Right now, the only public bank in the state is the New York Blood Center in Manhattan, though some private banks will collect the blood free of charge from parents who want to donate it and send it to a public bank.

The New York State Catholic Conference is less pleased with other developments on the stem cell front.

Earlier this year, Gov. Eliot Spitzer created the Empire State Stem Cell Board to oversee the distribution of $600 million in grants for stem cell research and development over the next 10 years. Supporters of embryonic stem cell research believe it holds enormous potential to cure diseases such as Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injuries and strokes. The Bush administration has placed restrictions on the federal funding of embryonic stem cell research; as a result, some states, such as New York, are taking it upon themselves to fund such research.

"We were certainly disappointed that money was enabled to go into embryonic stem cell research," Gallagher said. "We'd certainly prefer all money to go into noncontroversial options."

"This isn't going to eliminate the need for stem cell research," Lentol said of his legislation. "This may eliminate the need for extensive use of stem cells people have religious objections to using. It's not an alternative for stem cell research, but it's an alternative for people with objections to stem cell research."

Embryonic stem cells can be manipulated in a lab to develop into any type of tissue.

The stem cells in cord blood can make many different types of cells in the body, including blood cells that carry oxygen, fight disease and help stop bleeding.

Cord blood cells can be used to treat about 70 diseases; they are primarily used in transplant medicine to regenerate a patient's blood and immune system after the patient has been treated with chemotherapy or radiation to destroy cancer cells. Chemotherapy and radiation destroy the cancer cells in a patient, but they also destroy stem cells. The infusion of stem cells, or stem cell transplant, is performed after chemotherapy or radiation; the stem cells then migrate to the patient's bone marrow, where they multiply and regenerate all of the cells to create a new blood and immune system for the patient, according to CordBloodAwareness.org.

Stem cells are the body's master cells because they create all other tissues, organs and systems in the body. The stem cells in cord blood are the building blocks of the blood and immune system and most readily reproduce into red blood cells, which carry oxygen to all the cells in the body, white blood cells, which fight infection, and platelets, which aid in blood clotting.

Umbilical cord blood was first used for transplantation in 1988 in France, for a patient with Fanconi's anemia.

Reach Gazette reporter Sara Foss at 395-3193 or sfoss@dailygazette.net.

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